10.22.2012

I think by now you guys are probably familiar with my infatuation with all things antique. The moment I found out about Trust Antique Key Jewelry, I was kind of already in love. I'm not sure what it is about vintage keys that has my heart, but they've always been so darn intriguing to me. Today I'm giving one away. Not just any one, but the one you see me wearing above. I think it might be a little tough for me to give up, but I'm gonna do it. I love this one in particular because it hangs horizontally, which isn't typical of key necklaces -- at least in my experience. It's almost as if it's pointing straight at my heart! What a cheezball I am.

I'm sure this key has a story. I have no idea what it is, and I doubt I'll ever know, but part of that story is that it traveled from Tanya Rustigian (aka T. Rust. aka TRUST. Get it?!) in Massachusetts.. to me in Pennsylvania.. and now it's going to.. you! Whoever you may be. If you'd like to call this pretty little necklace your own, please like Antique Key Jewelry on Facebook and comment on this post telling me why this gem needs to be yours! I'd love it if you could tell your friends, too, because this happens to be my FIRST GIVEAWAY EVER. And if all goes well, maybe we can have some more in le future...

I'll pick a random winner next Friday, November 2nd. I bet it's going to be you! Make sure you comment with your email address so that I can contact you for your winnings! You better check your email :) To all of my international friends, I love you so much, but I have to keep this giveaway US only.

10.17.2012

A few outtakes from a little shoot we did at work yesterday. I am so in love with the space we used for the shoot. That white brick wall is absolutely stunning. If this were my bedroom, I'd never ever leave.

10.09.2012

Heck yes to cabins and generous new friends. Heck yes to road trips and color-changing leaves. Heck yes to building campfires and climbing tree houses that aren't ours. To washing dishes with creek water and hiking in the woods. To pumpkin beers, to homemade chili, to outhouses, to fly swatters. To three-way thumb wars and synchronized dance moves. To setting up tents and then sleeping indoors. Heck freaking yes to natural waterfalls and to moss as a souvenir. Heck yes to this past weekend.

10.05.2012

Today one of my awesome co-workers hosted a braid tutorial at work. And we all know you can't have braids without hair chalk. Such a fun Friday afternoon. And on that note, I'm off to camping in the 'burbs! Have a lovely weekend and I'll check ya'll later, skaters.

10.02.2012

For some reason I've been really into testing out little life changes lately. Gluten free... the 365-day project... welp, Sunday night I decided to add on another one. This week, for one whole week, I'm going Instagram free. You heard right, kids. The girl who instagrams every four minutes is going a whole week without it. Why? I don't know. Social media is a huge part of my life, and sometimes I wonder what life would be like without it. It would be a lot simpler, that's for sure.

I actually love Instagram. I think it's a great way to connect with people, to document every day life, and to be inspired. The only problem I have with it is that I find myself on it more often than I'd like. I find myself mindlessly swiping my thumb across that little screen every time a notification pops up. And those are the times that I don't gain anything positive. Those are the times that I'm not connecting with anyone, I'm not documenting anything, and I'm not drawing inspiration from anything. I'm simply going through the motions just because a little icon lit up on my phone. Why do I need to see that someone liked one of my photos? I don't need to see it. So I'm not going to.

There have been a couple times where I felt the instant reflex to Instagram in the past few days. To be honest, it's happened much less than I would have expected it to. But when those times occurred, I resisted and then reflected. I thought "Why do I want to document this?" "Am I trying to brag? Make someone laugh? Remember this moment?" Whatever the answer was, I realized that it wasn't a dire need for me to take a photo. I realized that I didn't feel any emptier inside without hitting that share button, and that makes me so happy. It means that when this week is through, I can go back to my Instagramming ways -- or not -- with no worry, because I don't feel as attached to the intangible app as I thought I did.

If and when I do go back to it, though, I'm shutting off those darn notifications.

10.01.2012

Welp, it's been an entire week since I began my 365-day project and I have no missed a day! Above is a gif of the shots I've gotten. The final project will, of course, be in color. It also will, of course, have some awesome music, which I have yet to pick out. I can't wait to see how this evolves as I go along. So far it's pretty straight forward, but I definitley have some ideas a-brewing...

Few things really beat a fall Sunday afternoon -- especially when you spend it at the park with delicious beers and an awesome little group of girls. Fall does not last long, so I'm trying to soak it in as much as I can! I freaking love this season.

Also, a few weeks ago I decided to go gluten free in hopes of curing this everlasting, seemingly uncurable stomach ache that's been living inside of me for the past 11 months -- which I actually don't think I've ever really mentioned on this here blog. It's no fun. That burr you see up thurr is gluten free, though, and totally delicious. I've been doing a pretty good job with my new eating habits, except for a couple of "Oops I forgot I'm gluten free" and "Whatever, this is an emergency" slip-ups. I don't really feel any better yet, but I'll keep it up for at least a month and hope for the best. If not, it'll be on to the next experiment!